By now, we all know about the severe devastation caused by the earthquakes in Haiti. NAR is helping answer the calls for help in two key ways.

First, we are contributing $550,000 to charities that will help bring much-needed supplies and care to the people of Haiti. Included in that sum is $100,000 donated by our REALTOR Benefits® Program partner, Lowe’s®, which we have matched at $100,000. From that we will donate $50,000 to The Harvest of Haiti, founded by REALTOR® Patrick Moore, a 2007 Good Neighbor Award winner. Patrick has done great work for several years in Haiti supporting orphans, delivering clean water and providing medical care for more than 3,500 people a year.

http://www.realtor.org/press_room/news_releases/2010/01/donate_haiti

We are also contributing $500,000 to the Clinton Bush Haiti Fund, which is supporting earthquake recovery efforts with immediate relief and long-term support to earthquake survivors. For up-to-the-minute information about these efforts, visit NAR’s Haiti relief page on REALTOR.org.

Second, I have asked NAR to accept donations from REALTORS® through the REALTORS® Relief Foundation. Please consider giving today. To make a donation, go to www. realtor.org/relief, and complete the contribution form.

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. once said: “An individual has not started living until he can rise above the narrow confines of his individualistic concerns to the broader concerns of all humanity.”

REALTORS® have earned a reputation for our compassionate work on behalf of others – both here in the United State and around the world. I hope you will join our latest efforts and bring that same compassion and hope to people who desperately need it.

Some other great points that I feel I should point out are:

• A third quarter survey released by the Federal Housing Finance Agency showed that out of 292 markets, 273 showed positive increase in value over the past 5 years
• The survey also concluded that prices were down nationally about 4%

In February, citizens’ workshops took place and over 550 people attended.  Citizens were presented with multiple alternatives.  The primary goal of the alternatives would be to improve the existing roads in the area, with the possibility of building a new bridge that connects the mainland of Currituck County to the beaches of the Outer Banks, with various other improvements to the roads.

After the workshops, over 350 citizens commented on their thoughts about these alternatives.  The people who commented consisted of residents, property owners, employers, and local officials.  Most respondents expressed concerns with the need to reduce traffic congestion, and to improve the ability to evacuate in the event of emergencies, such as hurricanes.   Another concern expressed was the need to enhance access from our beaches to the mainland.  Many stated the fact that a new bridge would best address the traffic congestion problems.  Other respondents expressed concern about adverse affects the bridge may have on the area’s natural resources and pristine environment.

Since the workshops have taken place, The North Carolina Turnpike Authority has narrowed the alternatives to three.  These three alternatives include ER2, MCB2, and MCB4.  ER2 is an alternative that would not include a Mid Currituck Bridge but would include a 6-8 lane superstreet.  MCB2 would include a Mid Currituck Bridge and the 6-8 lane superstreet.  MCB4 would include the new bridge, but no superstreet.  The Turnpike Authority has also put together a timeline for this project.  The timeline is as follows:

• Financial Feasibility Study- Completed
• Draft Environmental Impact Statement- Early 2009
• Final Environmental Impact Statement- Mid 2009
• Record of Decision- Late 2009
• Award Project Contract- Early 2010
• Project Open To Traffic- 2013

If you would like further information and would like to keep track of the project’s progress, including the results of recent traffic and market surveys, please click here.

http://www.newsobserver.com/business/story/1285522.html

Obama’s Ideas on Key Real Estate Issues:

To find out where president-elect Barack Obama stands on issues vital to real estate practitioners, REALTOR® Magazine went straight to the source.

This fall, when the presidential campaign was in full force, Obama responded to the magazine’s pressing questions about the mortgage crisis, sustainable development, housing affordability and other topics. Here’s what he said:

What’s the most important action the federal government can take to ease the mortgage crisis and prevent a recurrence?

Obama: For the short term, the housing relief legislation [signed by Pres. George W. Bush July 30] authorizing the FHA to refinance the mortgages of struggling homeowners is the right approach. I’ve also called for the creation of a $10 billion foreclosure prevention fund that works in tandem with state, local, and community nonprofit efforts to help households facing foreclosure renegotiate with lenders or put their homes on the market. We also need to expand the mortgage revenue bond program to give state housing agencies $10 billion in new resources to help struggling homeowners. For the long term, the Stop Fraud Act that I introduced two years ago would create criminal penalties for mortgage professionals found guilty of fraud and increase funding for federal and state enforcement of antifraud programs. I also want to see a simplified, standardized metric for calculating the costs of a home mortgage, similar to the annual percentage rate used by banks to identify the effective interest rate a borrower ends up paying on a loan.

What role should the federal government play in reducing gridlock and carbon emission and in promoting livable communities?

Obama: Our long-term competitiveness depends on the development of new transportation networks that reflect our increasingly mobile society. That’s why a strengthened transportation system is a priority for me. We must renew the federal government’s commitment to high-speed rail and take steps at the front end of planning processes for many transportation options. For example, I support a measure by Sen. Tom Harkin (D-Iowa) to require states and metropolitan planning organizations to adopt policies that incentivize bicycle and pedestrian use of roads. I’ll double the federal Jobs Access and Reverse Commute program to ensure that additional federal public transportation dollars flow to the highest-need communities and that urban planning initiatives take this aspect of transportation policy into account.

Even though prices have been easing for the last two years, housing affordability remains a challenge for many people. What can the federal government do to improve this situation?

Obama: I’ve proposed a universal mortgage interest tax credit for families that aren’t benefiting from the mortgage interest deduction. They would get an average credit of $500 a year. And I worked to pass the bipartisan homeownership tax credit. That’s a strong incentive because it gives developers a credit to bridge the gap between the cost of building a house and a sale price that’s affordable to low- and moderate-income households.

How should the federal government help millions of small-business owners and the self-employed obtain affordable health insurance?

Obama: Let’s build on our existing private health care system by allowing small employers and independent contractors to participate in a “national health insurance exchange” so they can purchase affordable health coverage similar to the plans available to federal employees. Individuals who need help paying for premiums will receive tax credits to ensure they can afford coverage. Employers that do not make a meaningful contribution to the cost of quality health coverage for their employees will be required to contribute a percentage of payroll toward the costs of the national plan. Small employers that meet certain revenue thresholds will be exempt. The plan will reimburse employer health plans for a portion of the catastrophic costs they incur above a threshold if they guarantee these savings are used to reduce workers’ premiums.

What’s the federal government’s role in promoting energy efficiency in commercial properties?

Obama: I’ll establish a goal of making all new buildings carbon-neutral by 2030 and work to improve new building efficiency by 50 percent and existing building efficiency by 25 percent over the next decade. To achieve that, I’ll seek to make federal buildings zero-emission by 2025, starting with a goal to make them 40 percent more efficient in five years. I’ll create a competitive grant program to recognize states and localities that take the first steps in implementing new building codes that prioritize energy efficiency. I’ll also seek to provide a federal match for states with public benefits funds that support energy-efficiency retrofits of existing buildings. In addition, I’ll invest in green-collar job training programs and create a “Green Jobs Corps” to connect disadvantaged youth with job skills in high-growth clean-energy industries.

What IRS code changes are needed to spur growth while ensuring tax burdens are spread evenly?

Obama: We need to reform our tax code so that it’s simple and fair and advances opportunity rather than loopholes for special interests. I’ll end tax breaks for companies that ship jobs overseas and reward companies that create good jobs here. I’ll encourage innovation and entrepreneurship by extending the research and development and renewable energy production tax credits and eliminating capital gains taxes for small and start-up businesses. And I’ll provide broad middle class tax relief—a “Making Work Pay” $500 tax credit, among other things—to help working families struggling with stagnant wages and skyrocketing energy and health costs.

—Robert Freedman

www.housingmarketfacts.com

http://www.realtor.org/press_room/news_releases/2008/house_passes_stability_1003

- Guide to Avoiding Foreclosure (U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development)